


Drowning Sorrows

by icemakestars



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Alcohol, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, M/M, they love each other I promise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-13
Packaged: 2018-11-13 18:43:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11191098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/icemakestars/pseuds/icemakestars
Summary: Lyon is depressed that his love for Gray is not requited. Unsurprisingly, Gray trying to comfort him is not a huge help.





	Drowning Sorrows

**Author's Note:**

> This was a commission roughly a year ago for the lovely @kyogre-blue on tumblr. Due to the restrictions on this website, I can't post my commission details here, but if you're interested then hmu @ice-bringer on tungle dot hell dot com :)

Lyon pressed the cool glass against his lips, tilting it slightly so that the bitter, hickory coloured liquid lapped against his lips, but then pulled his hand away with a sigh. He was a mess, and he knew it. As did the rest of Lamia, if the concerned glances they offered him as he grabbed his cloak and exited the guildhall. This was the fourth time in four five days that Lyon had left the guild early to round off his evening with a cocktail in his local bar, and people were /worried about him/. Not that there was any reason to be, because it wasn't the 'Tall, dark and handsome' cocktail which he was currently nursing which he was addicted to. No, what Lyon craved instead was a person who just about fit that exact description, in their own way. 

This was silly, really, Lyon decided. He was a grown man, after all, and would be turning thirty soon enough. There was no time for petty infatuations, and Lyon insisted to himself that that was all this was. A petty infatuation. However, lying to other people had proven to be a much easier task than lying to himself, and Lyon knew that the word he was avoiding, the word which sidestepped around the edges of his mind in a taunting and daring way, was more fitting to how he felt right now. The Big L Word which he could not say, through fear of the true meaning of it all... and who it was aimed at. 

It would have been easier if it had still been Juvia. At least that way, Lyon could freely admit his one-sided affection for a beautiful women, and people would understand. They would pat him sympathetically on the shoulder, eyes lowered with empathy and lips bowing with advice that they did not mean about circumstances they did not truly 'understand'. Lyon was used to that, knew that hecould handle it well. But this, this was uncharted territory. New feelings blossomed and bloomed, and they warped the peaceful garden of Lyon's heart into something more primal and jungle-like. And no compass on Earthland could help Lyon find his way out. He was lost in his emotions, but instead of drowning in them, he tried to dowse them. Lyon flicked his wrist, tipped his head back, and drank the rest of his cocktail in three, swift gulps. 

"Another." Lyon wafted his fingers in a signal to the bartender, who had been eyeing him more and more wearily as the week had progressed. Slowly, the bartender nodded, reaching down to grab the Vanilla Vodka from the bottom shelf. Before he had finished pouring the liguid into a tall glass, Lyon felt a presence behind him. 

"They told me you would be here." Gray's voice was thick with disappointment and concern, and Lyon knew that it certainly wasn't the cocktails which made his stomach churn. 

He stretched back into his chair, which was metal and bit into his back in several uncomfortable ways. Lyon settled his gaze on a new scar just above Gray's eyes, not quite being able to bring himself to meet them steadily. 

"Who did?" His voice was calm, which surprised and pleased Lyon in equal measures. Gray stared at him for a moment, words clearly pressing against his lips, which a quick shake of the head seemed to clear. 

"Your guild. More specifically, your team mates. They're all really worried about you, Lyon, and seem to have good reason for it."  

The stool next to Lyon squealed as Gray pulled it out, and it shook unsteadily with the weight of the Fairy Tail wizard. Lyon had been in this bar enough times to know which stools were steady and which were not, but something prevented him from sharing that information with his oldest friend. 

"Your drink, Sir." The bartender, whom Lyon had forgotten entirely about, noted an appropriate gap in this exchange large enough for him to slide the cocktail to Lyon, who nodded his gratitude stiffly. 

His lips quirked to the side, eyes darting to Gray just quickly enough to catch the disapproving tilt of his black eyebrows. 

"What makes you say that?" Lyon sipped the drink this time, knowing that if he did not pace himself Gray would confiscate all alcohol from him entirely, leaving them, both relatively sober, in a quiet bar on a weekday to talk about their feelings like the adults they supposedly were. Lyon could think of nothing worse. Instead, he hailed the bartender over again. 

"A bourbon on the rocks for my... friend." _Friend_. That word held more bitterness than all of the liquor on those shelves combined, and the taste it left in Lyon's mouth was just as unpleasant. 

Gray raised his palm to halt the bartender and shook his head ardently, "Nothing for me, thank you. And I'd be grateful if you didn't serve him for the foreseeable future." 

"Come on, Gray! You're only young once! And this isn't the only bar in town, banning me from drinking here won't stop me from drinking somewhere else." Lyon sighed. 

The bartender, clearly unsure as to how to deal with this situation, moved to serve another customer, and Gray studied Lyon carefully before speaking again. 

"What's her name?" Gray said. Lyon jolted at that, almost knocking over his drink as he turned to face Gray in shock.  

A woman, of course. It would be logical to assume that Lyon's love interest was female, because that was what was expected of him. When he looked up into Gray's face, which was so open and willing to help, Lyon knew that he could not lie to him. Not about this. 

"There is no woman." He muttered, eyes fixed on the way his drink fizzed. 

Gray leant in closer, voice dropping in volume, "So, a man then?" 

Air seemed to rush past Lyon's airs, and everything looked fuzzy. Did Gray know? Did someone else tell him? Lyon was sure that he had kept his feelings a secret... but maybe he was more obvious than he thought... maybe someone from Lamia had found out... maybe... 

"Why would you say that?" Lyon's voice came out a choked gargle, and Gray seemed almost amused. 

"I know about your affairs with men, even if you've never officially dated any." Gray raised his hand and placed it on Lyon's knee, squeezing slightly, "It's okay, Lyon. I've known for a while, and it changes nothing; you're still my brother, like you always were." 

They were words spoken from the heart, clearly designed to bring reassurance. They didn't. Instead, Lyon felt a tugging in his gut which reminded him of the one thing that he could never have, the one thing that sat literally just out of his reach. He clattered to his feet, forcing Gray to remove his grip and balling his fists up in a sudden burst of rage. 

"You don't know a damn thing about me!"   

Lyon turned and stalked out of the bar, ignoring Gray's pleas to sit and talk this through. It was darker now, but he knew these streets well. That was an advantage which Gray did not have, and would no doubt make it harder for him to track Lyon down. Neon lights flashed all around, different pubs and clubs coming alive as the sun went down. As Lyon had said, there were plenty of bars in this town, and he eyed them all eagerly, desperately needing a drink. 


End file.
